I can't get past the feeling that all the really cool/interesting "djent" bands (Periphery, Tesseract, Fellsilent, Mehuggah, etc.) have truly horrendous and irritating vocalists. I think that style could be so much better suited with different vocals.

Think about it, they cover a lot of different styles with the bands you mentioned. Primarily clean, primarily harsh, very harsh, double vocals that are on the scream side.

What exactly would you prefer from them? I've always wondered what most people would expect these kind of bands to have.

Periphery and Tesseract have similar vocalists--whiny cleans and ugly screams (different from harsh vocals, if you know what I mean). Fellsilent has two horrible yellers/screamers who sometimes try to sing. They're all the same type of obnoxious, though. Meshuggah's vocals just aren't for me--there's nothing really wrong with them, per se, but they just don't do it for me (same with Gojira).

What I want is someone more dynamic; someone like Erik Kalsbeek (or Mike Patton or Dev!). Even Bjorn Strid would be better. Someone with a good sense of melody and expression--someone to evolve the genre away from its "-core" roots. I just put my bitching in this thread because everything about those bands is awesome except their vocalists and it kind of spoils them. It seems like they all go for this same mold of vocalist who is technically average and emotionally flat, and then they produce the hell out of him to make him sound even worse. It's not as bad as it could be, though, since none of them have hired James LaBrie!

Just a few of my thoughts. And obviously they'll all get support with their present line-ups. Just whining, myself.

I can't get past the feeling that all the really cool/interesting "djent" bands (Periphery, Tesseract, Fellsilent, Mehuggah, etc.) have truly horrendous and irritating vocalists. I think that style could be so much better suited with different vocals.

Think about it, they cover a lot of different styles with the bands you mentioned. Primarily clean, primarily harsh, very harsh, double vocals that are on the scream side.

What exactly would you prefer from them? I've always wondered what most people would expect these kind of bands to have.

Periphery and Tesseract have similar vocalists--whiny cleans and ugly screams (different from harsh vocals, if you know what I mean). Fellsilent has two horrible yellers/screamers who sometimes try to sing. They're all the same type of obnoxious, though. Meshuggah's vocals just aren't for me--there's nothing really wrong with them, per se, but they just don't do it for me (same with Gojira).

What I want is someone more dynamic; someone like Erik Kalsbeek (or Mike Patton or Dev!). Even Bjorn Strid would be better. Someone with a good sense of melody and expression--someone to evolve the genre away from its "-core" roots. I just put my bitching in this thread because everything about those bands is awesome except their vocalists and it kind of spoils them. It seems like they all go for this same mold of vocalist who is technically average and emotionally flat, and then they produce the hell out of him to make him sound even worse. It's not as bad as it could be, though, since none of them have hired James LaBrie!

Just a few of my thoughts. And obviously they'll all get support with their present line-ups. Just whining, myself.

Agree with you almost 100%

Yeah, I bought Obzen while back after hearing Bleed, I tought that I give these guys a try. Well, Bleed still rocks as one song but I just can't listen whole record because those vocals get tiresome really quick. Good to know that I'm not alone

I can't listen to Meshuggah as much any more either because of Jens' vocals... Still love the music but the vocals start to do my head in after a few songs. I don't like Tesseract or Periphery's singers either.

I'd agree with whoever suggested Patton. I really liked what he did with the Dillinger Escape Plan on Irony is a Dead Scene... And all the other things he does. Dunno about Devin fitting in with that sort of music, to be honest...

Dev doesn't have a place in that kind of music. He suits himself just fine. The problem I have with Entropy's argument is that most Patton fans will immediately say that Patton would be great for any band. He is versatile(as his recordings with DEP show) but he cant be some vocalist whore who just goes to every band so a few people can be happy with the band's vocals. The thing is, Misha likes Spencer's vocals. Acle likes Dan's vocals. They both started their respective bands, and we have no say and what goes down with them. Of course we all have our opinions on who sounds better and whether or not we see them fitting the band.

If you want to hear Patton-esque vocals in a rhythmically based band, wait for Textures' next album with the singer from Cilice.

I think it's more that "Patton" is nearly a statement of abilities in terms of singing, screaming, growling and nearly everything else you could possibly achieve with your voice as opposed to people actually suggesting he personally could step in. Those bands need vocalists with variety. There aren't a lot of people out there with the ability to have both exceptional clean and rough vocal skills... Then you go down that whole two vocalist road and things get even more messy.

Singers are always gonna be hugely hit and miss really. You can change your guitar tone or switch around your style of playing bass or drums or whatever but with a singer you've sort of got your voice and what you can do with it is what you can do with it... Sure you can improve but you can't just have the immediate change in output that an instrument can have. Nobody could ever hope to keep everyone happy...


...at least without auto-tune.

Right, like I said Patton is a very versatile vocalist but I couldn't imagine him stepping in for every band that gets complaints on the vocals.

Your point is the best, singers are hit or miss. I dont mind the vocalists in any of the bands Entropy mentioned. Mainly because I never focus on vocals in music, I am a guitarist after all

I love Jens' vocals on all Shuggah albums apart from ObZen (bar the first two lines in Bleed, they jizztastic), but I get tired of them if I continually listen to Shug. His vocals on NMCC and Mouth Licking What You've Bled when he goes completely insane in the chorus before the solo cannot be beaten! And Rational Gaze. And he's really fucking charismatic!

He suits himself just fine.

Maybe I'm reading into this far too much, but I see what you did thar.

The thing is, Misha likes Spencer's vocals. Acle likes Dan's vocals.

I agree completely. I have SO learned this the hard way. As long as I like the vocalist, whether it be someone else...or me...for my music, that's the bottom line.

Singers are always gonna be hugely hit and miss really. You can change your guitar tone or switch around your style of playing bass or drums or whatever but with a singer you've sort of got your voice and what you can do with it is what you can do with it... Sure you can improve but you can't just have the immediate change in output that an instrument can have. Nobody could ever hope to keep everyone happy...

Hmmm. Well, perhaps. But back when singers did singing, that was not the case. Ozzy could probably make a reasonable fist of covering Aretha, Agnetha could probably pull off Robert Plant fairly well (fnarr fnarr).
Its since we got to squeal piggy squeal and Cookie monster and screaming and all the other shit spewed from microphones that makes much of metal unlistenable these days that the problems arise.

Just my opinion.
It's not just right because I'm old. It 's also true.

Singers are always gonna be hugely hit and miss really. You can change your guitar tone or switch around your style of playing bass or drums or whatever but with a singer you've sort of got your voice and what you can do with it is what you can do with it... Sure you can improve but you can't just have the immediate change in output that an instrument can have. Nobody could ever hope to keep everyone happy...

Hmmm. Well, perhaps. But back when singers did singing, that was not the case. Ozzy could probably make a reasonable fist of covering Aretha, Agnetha could probably pull off Robert Plant fairly well (fnarr fnarr).
Its since we got to squeal piggy squeal and Cookie monster and screaming and all the other shit spewed from microphones that makes much of metal unlistenable these days that the problems arise.

Just my opinion.
It's not just right because I'm old. It 's also true.

You're just mad you cant play the stuff we do on guitar

[Octillus]

Weedily weedily skreeee Weedily weedily skreeee CHUGGA CHUGGA BREAKDOWNZZ


Sorry. Just doesn't do it for me either, and I'm decidedly MUCH younger than that dinosaur Billy.

Weedily weedily skreeee Weedily weedily skreeee CHUGGA CHUGGA BREAKDOWNZZ


Sorry. Just doesn't do it for me either, and I'm decidedly MUCH younger than that dinosaur Billy.

You're also more boring

The way I see it, if you're not even that big a fan of newer metal, you should just stay out of the conversations because you'll obviously do nothing but berate it in the end.

[Octillus]

Weedily weedily skreeee Weedily weedily skreeee CHUGGA CHUGGA BREAKDOWNZZ


Sorry. Just doesn't do it for me either, and I'm decidedly MUCH younger than that dinosaur Billy.

You're also more boring

The way I see it, if you're not even that big a fan of newer metal, you should just stay out of the conversations because you'll obviously do nothing but berate it in the end.

Eh, I dunno about that. It's not that I'm ignorant to this newer style... I mean, I grew up with the drummer of Son of Aurelius, and they're getting pushed pretty hard these days. And, it's definitely the style my new roommates are trying to emulate... to the point of injury in the case of my buddy Sam.

I'm getting kinda tired of it, is all. I like some of the tech stuff, but for the most part I find it dull. What's kinda cool are some of the byproducts of this era, such as Animals as Leaders, since they're y'know, musical.

Also, it's not like I'm in ur base killin ur doodz in the Tesseract or Periphery threads.